FLS 
w ^ 2015 


024953 






7‘: ,W k 


•V ■: • ff'V 

/ . . • 

■ - . . . • I ; 

>•: : ■ ■ . 


/^(•V- i'h {. ; '* • . « fflV If 

• ■ • 1 ;■ • • • '■ ; 7 .* ? t 

• i • • r». *>)' v, •> ' ’ 4 . 


.w» *• W»J. • ,*. >i , • ■'/}}- .»•// :•* ' * 

■ • .*>-*-* r 

.M'% U it r - -• i 


• . • ’ •• ” !. • {• • « 

• pt r i V';#-"fe'ViSS; ri.• ■■•■■■■ 

• ».' • • • J u i . • * * * • A • * 


vOy/M**?}''it,!» •*-*->':«* lit Vf » * • • 

» • ■ ii* ’ • ,"t , 'V » • , } 4 # # f # • ' • 1 # ^ 

.•i i ■■ • • .» v.. • t.' v 

■ *:• i' '. 4 ;• 

• i.'. y/*V ‘y ** • 

• •' { ** 

. ;.••...•}* • •. 

= :• ' ' • • .. 

v >Vw : 1 >; ’/• 

i ? • \ 11 »■ • ' 4 1 ...»I. . i •».; • •! ♦ : \ • *. * * * * 


j . ; '.A / . /-JRA 

;»!Vw-^ Av.\- r .'» 

..vi 

•: -. 4 *. 


V v ;:- ymmtiSi x<\ 

: ■ . ■ isc’i 

' • ' • 

*• ‘ . . 


; •' 

• • ' • - ■ 
• ' 

■ vV -v v * v 

. • . ’ ... 


. .. . • . . • • ». ?»• 

. < *. ,. v iij* » • . • V 41 * • * • * • /• .• i ♦ 

• * .<• ■ • r i ' ■*)> ' vi,’’ »*>i>f.r ***':*«• 

, ••'; • ,>•*• h‘t\ •' V '. 

' ' «'• • '.U u . 1 I • '*•' ■ , , 




- ■ -V, 


j»y v'-?« ij* «* * < % * | 


.V*,' ••/4 v V- 


• • ' VI ' • 

■ • '• v; ' • • v ; •• i* 

• * l ,* * • 11 . vV. * . • *.• i * 4 

•v>v;V.-. V.v ..vVV.-.' :: 1 ; 

v : } ^'V? ?,■'».I'V 

■ • ‘ •. V. ,.V ‘ « ’ • • 


”• 1 ; : , •• > r 

•* ,iV • ■ H 

\ ■ : 

\* I • / » F w •. - T i L 




' y*\ -- 

v;4- If 

^ A / « <•'*• V ;f ♦ ** * 

* - a*: . .«■•• * .* 

• _ «' ^ ^; * j • _. ■» * # 


. ’ •*: •> m 4'Cvjf 


< -V ? » & f • ‘ V-; 

4 1 ' «'•». * *4 jTV 

. .. .. . 


’ *. , 4 > ’, T • , • • i 

.4 . * • v "9 H- 




‘ J, i* -.4.. J. / ’<**/ -i' u* % r .‘, fi 

j». ♦T. «>p f i . "«* .V *i ,r jr. if "j \ ■. - V ATr 

ViTf *J. 

f'jiCvK 5.' ere.•*>*.v u .>.-■ 
i v: H *' **. • . 1 ’ * * 

*'• *-> V r ':' / 

■ 

" 4 *. • y; • * % , 4 / ? 5r:a^4j. , 

• i v. bj" \ 4 -r v 5 4 , * • v 

A', br>/ . t i *.!• • \ •*.»/ F*V . m ~ 

- f, % *£»>?> i ' ' A • A t « J 

4,-*’i’ *fif i ?J? ’>1' Jq,' **.*V 
*r •••; f JA. * SIX~ ^ 


f i *y y 


-i.i 


ir.. *V*y K 


• ' ii'i 

' • ' 


W.&JR > 


V- y ' r ■ ' ' 4 . . . . r; . - « 

- 1 . ■ . 




% «4*;i * Jfcr* v, r *. j 4? 4 « : /•Jrtr k - 

'4»Vy.CiV^4wri'4<vV.«.\?;;l V 

:« V* ♦ ** ■ *j f-tAfiafFH *« *•/>V; . # 

x 4 i 4 1 ■• ^ i • »- * : 4 • ♦ * !• .‘f i 

i + d| if*.-' » • < • i » 

#/.t' •v *'■ V,^ - ti* ' ' ,.V-' 

1 U* • • '•* . V Li 

■ ■ - . 




' 4 -* ** *;• * 




?/-*'j;?* 
' \VJ-i * . 1 % 


i* 


*A 4 a '-'\' a' ' 
JV;» *.VV,* 






R » M 


k V • • • 

1 






4 v v' 





























LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 

Z 

| ...... 

' ' • C 31 


UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



































































< 







PERSONAL NARRATIVES 


Battles oe the Rebellion 
No. 10: 


THE 


Battle of the Mine. 











































1 1 E 





































































PERSONAL NARRATIVES 


OF THE 


Battles of the Rebellion, 

BEING 

PAPERS READ BEFORE THE 


'RHODE ISLAND SOLDIERS AND SAILORS 


’I 


HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 


No. 10. 


“ Quaeque ipse miserrima vidi, 
Et quorum pars magna fui 


PROVIDENCE: 
SIDNEY S. RIDER. 

1879. 


71 


Copyright by 

SIDNEY S. RIDER. 
1 879. 


PRINTED BY PROVIDENCE PRESS COMPANY 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 




J f 


’A 



BY 


/ 

ERYIN T. CASE, 


(Late Captain Ninth New Hampshire Volunteers.) 


) 


(!■ 


/ ■ 

^> v C 1 


i OF 

pPYRiG^P<] 


?{ Mo. JLU.lA 

V%, 1879. .q 

OF 



PROVIDENCE 
SIDNEY S. RIDER 





Copyright by 
SIDNEY S. ItlDER. 


1 879. 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


[Read before the Society, February 9th, 1876.] 


I have selected as the subject for a half hour’s - 
discourse, arid, I trust, entertainment and profit, the 
"Battle of the Mine,” or as it is sometimes called, 
the battle of " Cemetery Hill,” or the " Crater,” 
which was fought in front of Petersburg, Virginia, 
July thirtieth, 1864, and formed one of the series of 
engagements and seige operations around Richmond 
and Petersburg, by which General Grant fastened 
and tightened his grasp upon the throat of the rebel 
confederacy, which resulted in the capture of those 
cities and terminated at last under the apple tree at 
Appomattox. 

This engagement, it is true, will never occupy a 
prominent place in the large catalogue of the battles 
of the war of the rebellion, either from its magni- 



6 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


tude, for it was fought on a very limited extent of 
territory and between comparatively a small number 
of troops, (there being at no time over fifteen thou¬ 
sand men actively engaged upon either side,) or for 
its results, for these consisted mainly in a heavy loss 
to the union army of brave men, and in bickerings 
and estrangement between officers high in rank and 
command, that betokened and ended in no good to 
our cause, and without any compensatory injury to 
the enemy. It was not a turning point in a cam¬ 
paign, like Antietam and Gettysburg, and thus ren¬ 
dered memorable. It was not a victory for us or 
even a drawn battle, but a miserable failure. 

I have chosen it as my theme for other reasons 
than these. First, because I deemed it might not be 
wholly uninteresting to a Rhode Island audience 
from the fact that it was planned by, and fought 
under the command of one whom Rhode Island is 
proud to claim and to honor, and closed, so far as 
the war of the rebellion was concerned, a military 
career always honorable, generally successful and 
brilliant, and which will derive new lustre in the 
light of future history, when the rubbish of calumny 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


7 


and jealousy shall have been cleared away, and the 
true value of the military service, as well as the true 
nobility of character and exalted patriotism of Gen¬ 
eral Burnside, shall be fully appreciated and render 
his name everywhere, as it is now where his services 
are best known, a household word. Secondly, be¬ 
cause the published statements and criticisms of this 
engagement are so strongly conflicting and contra¬ 
dictory, and, in many instances, so grossly inaccurate 
and unjust, that having participated in the action, 
and in a position such that I can say of it in the 
language of another, " All of which I saw, a part of 
which I was,” I have ever been desirous* to place 
upon record, so far as I might in my humble capacity, 
a true account of what passed under my own obser¬ 
vation at the time, as I recall them in memory 
to-day; without assuming, however, the part of a 
military critic in regard to it, but with the sole desire 
of stating as correctly as possible, the facts as I saw 
them. And, thirdly, for the reason that though not 
a great battle, it was one of the most desperate of 
the war, and affords some of the most striking in¬ 
stances of personal daring and self-sacrifice that 


8 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


occurred during the whole four years of conflict, 
replete throughout with instances of daring and 
devotion equal to any upon the pages of history. 
And it is my purpose to deal quite as much with 
these incidents of the battle, as with that portion of 
it which is already a matter of history. 

The operations of the Army of the Potomac 
which preceded the " Battle of the Mine,” during 
that memorable campaign of the spring and summer 
of 1864, are matters of history, and so familiar to 
you all that I need but refer to them briefly in pass¬ 
ing. General Grant having been appointed to the 
command of the armies of the United States in 
March, 1864, had assumed the personal direction of 
the Army of the Potomac, and after reorganizing 
and reenforcing it, had crossed the Rapidan on the 
fifth day of May, with the declaration that he "in¬ 
tended to fight it out on that line, if it took all sum¬ 
mer,” and by a series of flank movements, arrived in 
front of Petersburg on the sixteenth of June, having 
fought during the five weeks, the battles of the 
Wilderness, Spottsylvania, North Anna, Tolopotomy, 
Bethesda Church, and Cold Harbor, among the 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


9 


fiercest and most sanguinary of the war. Although 
the army had become greatly reduced and worn out 
by incessant marching and fighting, an attack was at 
once ordered. After three days fighting, in which 
the enemy had been pushed back to within about a 
mile of the city of Petersburg, and into a line of 
earthworks from which it was found impossible to 
dislodge him by direct assault, General Grant 
abandoned the idea of the immediate capture of 
Petersburg and Richmond, and began at once to 
draw his lines of investment around the doomed 
cities, and the siege commenced. Petersburg, then 
a city of eighteen thousand inhabitants, is situated 
on the Appomattox river, twenty-three miles south 
of Richmond, and the two cities were so situated 
and connected that the fall of one almost necessarily 
involved the capture of the other. General Grant 
had determined to make Petersburg the principal 
point of attack, at the same time operating against 
Richmond on the north side of the James river. The 
position of the two lines in front of Petersburg at 
the time of the "Battle of the Mine,” I will speak 
of as briefly as possible, although I can give you but 


10 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


a faint idea, either of the natural situation of the 
field or of the works that covered it. 

The Appomattox river runs nearly east past the 
city which is on its south side. About a mile and a 
half east or below the city, on the river, commenced 
the rebel line of works of which I shall speak, and 
which extended south, bearing a little to the west 
for about three miles. This line, of course, w T as not 
straight but was constructed so as to form all possi¬ 
ble angles and to make available all the natural ad¬ 
vantages of the position. Our first line was nearly 
parallel with this, and at some points not more than 
an hundred yards distant from it. Our second or 
main line, was half or three-fourths of a mile to the 
rear, and on higher ground, where several forts or 
earthworks had been constructed, which contained at 
the time of the battle, several seige guns, besides the 
regular field artillery of the army. At the point 
where the " Battle of the Mine” was fought there 
was a deep ravine between our first and second line, 
our front line being but a few yards from the crest 
of the ravine. This ravine or hollow, which at some 
places was quite wide, was comparatively protected 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


11 


from the enemy’s fire, but the slope between that 
and our rear line, was swept by the enemy’s fire, 
both of artillery and musketry, so that troops go¬ 
ing to the front line, were obliged to go under 
cover of the darkness of night, and even then, the 
loss was so great that a covered way was constructed 
by which they could go in safety. A little south¬ 
east of the city, about a mile from the river and 
about the same distance from the city, the rebels had 
constructed a fort in their front line and placed in it 
six pieces of artillery. This fort was only about 
four hundred feet from our front line. In fact, the 
lines were so near together that " Yank ” and 
" Johnny” held many familiar chats with each other 
across the intervening space. The Ninth Corps, by 
which the " Battle of the Mine ” was principally 
fought upon our side, occupied the lines directly in 
front of this fort. At the risk of wearying your 
patience with these dry details, I must ask you to 
keep in mind the situation as I have attempted to 
describe it, in order better to understand the descrip¬ 
tion of the battle. 

The Ninth Corps at this time consisted of four 


12 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


divisions, the first, second and third being white 
troops and largely from New England, and the fourth 
composed of colored troops who, up to this time, 
had never been under fire, while the three white 
divisions had participated in every battle of the 
campaign and had become terribly reduced in num¬ 
bers. For six weeks there had not been a day of 
rest, scarcely an hour of quiet. Morning, noon and 
midnight, the booming of their cannon and the rat¬ 
tling of their musketry echoed unceasingly through 
the Wilderness, around the hills of Spottsylvania, 
along the banks of the North Anna, and among the 
groves of Bethesda Church and Cold Harbor, and 
their ranks had again been decimated in front of 
Petersburg, in securing the position they now held, 
so that these divisions which crossed the Rapidan on 
the fifth of May twenty thousand strong, now num¬ 
bered but about eight thousand effective men. I 
cannot give you the exact figures, but will give you 
the loss of my own regiment up to this time as an 
illustration of what the corps had suffered. We took 
into the first battle four hundred men, and in forty- 
two days our loss in killed and wounded, had been 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


13 


upwards of three hundred and twenty-five, forty-two 
of whom were laid side by side in one grave beneath 
the trees of Spottsylvania. But notwithstanding 
these losses and hardships, such was their confidence 
in their true-hearted General Burnside, and such 
their devotion to the cause in which they were en¬ 
gaged, that they were ready and willing for any duty 
they might be called upon to perform. For reasons 
which will be stated hereafter, General Burnside 
decided to keep the fourth or colored division, in 
reserve, and thus all the arduous duty in the trenches 
fell upon the other three divisions ; and more severe 
duty can hardly be imagined, for each alternate 
forty-eight hours was spent behind the front line of 
breastworks in the sand, without shelter and exposed 
to the enemy’s fire unless we lay low, and the re¬ 
mainder of the time we were in the second line, 
where we were still exposed to the enemy’s fire, and 
not a day passed without more or less loss in killed 
and wounded. Such was the condition of the corps 
when it went into position in front of Petersburg, 
and such its duty there for the six weeks previous 
to the battle. 


2 


14 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


Soon after our occupation of these lines, it oc¬ 
curred to the practical eye of an officer of the corps, 
Lieutenant-Colonel Pleasants, of the Forty-eighth 
Pennsylvania Regiment, that this fort which I have 
mentioned, could be mined and blown up by an ex¬ 
plosion of gunpowder beneath it. Colonel Pleasants 
was a practical mining engineer before the war, and 
immediately taking his observations, he submitted 
his plan to General Burnside, who approved it, and he 
submitted it to General Meade, commanding the 
Army of the Potomac, who disapproved it. Per¬ 
mission or rather sufferance, however, was obtained 
from army head-quarters for the construction of 
the mine, and on the twenty-fifth day of June, Col¬ 
onel Pleasants with his regiment, who were mostty 
miners, commenced the work. The mine commenced 
in the ravine of which I have spoken, and five hun¬ 
dred feet distant from the fort. It was apparent 
from the first, that no aid or encouragement would 
be received from General Meade. No instruments 
or tools could be obtained, and as the work pro¬ 
gressed, the men were obliged to bring out every 
foot of earth excavated, by hand in hard-tack boxes, 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


15 


as no wheelbarrows could be obtained. But with 
all these disadvantages, such was the energy and 
perseverance of Colonel Pleasants and his men, that 
in thirty days from the time they stuck the first 
spade into the earth, they had excavated a hole four 
feet wide, four and a half feet high, and five hundred 
and twenty feet long, extending under the doomed 
fort, and had constructed a chamber eighty feet long, 
in which were placed eight thousand pounds of pow¬ 
der. General Grant, who had not abandoned the 
idea that Petersburg might yet be carried by assault, 
determined to take advantage of the opportunity 
that would be afforded by the explosion of this mine 
to carry out his purpose, and therefore readily acceded 
to General Burnside’s request, made soon after the 
work of constructing the mine commenced, to storm 
the enemy’s works with the Ninth Corps, supported 
by other corps, in connection with the explosion of 
the mine. General Burnside at once laid his plans 
for the attack. The colored division was selected by 
him to lead the charge, and accordingly they were 
kept in reserve and in constant drill for such move¬ 
ments and service as would be required of them in 


16 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


the attack, while the other divisions, which were to 
support the Fourth, were kept in constant service in 
the trenches. The mine was charged on the twenty- 
seventh of July, and on the twenty-eighth a demon¬ 
stration w T as made in front of Richmond, to draw the 
enemy’s attention. 

The morning of the thirtieth, which had been fixed 
for the attack, was rapidly approaching, and General 
Burnside had completed his arrangements for it, and 
only waited for the moment to arrive which he had 
all confidence would place our army in possession of 
Petersburg and destroy Lee’s army. On the after¬ 
noon of the twenty-ninth, while he was thus anx¬ 
iously waiting, he was summoned to General Meade’s 
head-quarters and informed that his plan was disap¬ 
proved, and that the three divisions of white troops 
must make the attack and the fourth division act as 
a support. I shall not attempt to criticise this inter¬ 
ference, but am content that the future shall base its 
judgment of it upon the testimony of General 
Grant before the " Committee on the Conduct of the 
War,” in which he says : " General Burnside wanted 
to put his colored division in front, and I believe if 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


17 


he had done so, it would have been a success, still I 
agreed with General Meade in his objection to that 
plan.” The result of this change was to leave the 
colored division with its full ranks, about seven 
thousand men, who had been specially drilled for the 
duty, as a support, and put in the other three divi¬ 
sions, worn out and reduced to about the same 
strength numerically as the single colored division. 
But General Burnside had no alternative than to 
adopt the plan of General Meade, and he changed 
his orders accordingly. 

Such was the situation as the night of the twenty- 
ninth of July closed in upon us. I remember stand¬ 
ing in our rear line as the sun was sinking behind 
the hills beyond Petersburg, looking across the fields 
which on the morrow were to behold such carnage. 
Along the eminence where I stood, was a line of 
breastworks connecting a chain of forts, the guns in 
every one of which, more than a hundred in all, 
were already shotted and carefully trained upon the 
point of attack. From where I stood, the ground 
sloped gradually to the ravine of which I have 
spoken, through which in our front ran the bed of 


18 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


the Weldon Railroad. Just across this ravine I 
could see our front line of breastworks, heavily 
built with traverses to protect the men who wearily 
stood guard behind it. A few hundred feet beyond 
frowned the fort, garrisoned by several hundred men, 
thirty feet beneath whom lay the four tons of pow¬ 
der waiting for the match. Between these lines, 
was a smooth plain or rather a gentle slope, rising 
towards the rebel lines, across wjiicli on the morrow 
we were to charge. Beyond the rebel line the 
ground still rose for half a mile, forming a crest 
upon which was a cemetery, giving it the name of 
" Cemetery Hill.” This hill was to be the objec¬ 
tive point of our attack, for it crowned the city, 
which was upon the farther slope leading down to 
the river, and whose tall spires cast their lengthened 
shadows in the light of the setting sun. I shall 
never forget till my dying day the scene or the 
thoughts that passed through my mind, as I stood 
there on that summer eve. 

All the plans, of course, for the battle had been 
kept a profound secret except at the several army 
and corps headquarters, until late in the afternoon 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


19 


it began to be whispered among the officers of the 
Ninth Corps, almost under their breath, that an 
important movement was about to be made, and of 
course all knew almost instinctively that the mine was 
about to be sprung and that it was to be followed by 
a grand attack upon the enemy’s line of works. The 
information was conveyed to the officers of the 
regiment to which I belonged by the commanding 
officer as we gathered at his quarters, as was our 
wont, after dress parade, for we occasionally had 
dress parade when not on the front line. After pass¬ 
ing a few moments with us pleasantly in social con¬ 
verse, he suddenly remarked, and 1 can remember 
as if it were but yesterday, the expression on his 
countenance and the tone of his voice, " Gentlemen, 
when you gather here to-morrow night, some of us 
will not be present ; probably we shall never all 
meet here again,” and then he gave us the plans of 
the battle so far as they had been communicated 
to him. But oh ! how sadly true were his words. 
Of the dozen officers then present, on the morrow 
night five gathered in that lonely tent, but its occu¬ 
pant of the previous night was never more to meet 


20 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


tis there, having been one of the first to fall, severely 
wounded, as we crossed the enemy’s line. 

At one o’clock in the morning, the troops of the 
Ninth Corps were ordered into line and began to 
pass through the covered way to the ravine and 
into the position assigned them. The troops had 
all been withdrawn from the front line of works, 
they being too near the fort for safety at the time 
of the explosion, and massed just at the farther edge 
of the ravine and a little in rear of the breastworks ; 
the second'division, General Potter, on the right, 
the first, General Ledlie, in the centre, and the third, 
General Wilcox, on the left. The orders of Gen¬ 
eral Burnside were that immediately upon the explo¬ 
sion, General Ledlie’s division was to advance 
directly on the demolished fort, while General Pot¬ 
ter was to move down the enemy’s works to the 
right and General Wilcox on the left, while the sole 
idea pervading the whole of General Meade’s orders 
and dispatches before and during the engagement, 
were to the effect that the troops were to be pushed 
forward at once to the crest of "Cemetery Hill.” 
What he expected to accomplish by this movement, 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


21 


without first driving the enemy from his front line to 
the right and left of the small break to be made by the 
explosion and subsequent passage of troops through 
the opening, requires a greater knowledge of mili¬ 
tary movements than I possess, to divine. Certain 
it is, and it would seem that it would have been 
apparent to any ordinary military mind, that every 
man that passed beyond the first line of the enemy’s 
works through this expected opening, would be cap¬ 
tured unless the line to the right and left could be 
forced to retire. 

It fell to the lot of the regiment to which I be¬ 
longed, to lead the column of General Potter’s 
division, which was massed in column of regiments, 
and to occupy a position directly in front of the 
mine and the rebel fort, and nearer to it than any 
other troops. We were formed in a grove of trees 
upon the edge of the ravine, which grove was or¬ 
dered, by General Burnside, at the solicitation of 
Colonel Monroe, (J. Albert,) Chief of Artillery of the 
Ninth Corps, to be cut down instantly upon the ex¬ 
plosion, in order to give a better view of the enemy’s 
line, and a detail of negroes from the fourth division 


22 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


had been made for this purpose, and were standing 
at their allotted posts, axe in hand, to do the work 
assigned them ; and here let me pay a tribute to the 
manner in which that duty was performed, for no 
sooner had the explosion occurred, than every man 
sprung to his place, two being assigned to the large 
and one to the smaller trees, and not a man left his 
post till every tree had fallen, though many of them 
fell at their posts, and in several instances where two 
were assigned the same tree, and one had fallen, the 
other remained till the work was done. Was there 
greater bravery displayed in the excitement and heat 
of the battle than this, although it was exhibited by 
men of sable hue, but of true and noble heart and 
nerve ? 

At three o’clock every regiment of the corps was 
in position, waiting for the explosion, which was to 
take place at half past three. Then came that terri¬ 
ble hour before the battle, which no one can under¬ 
stand or appreciate except those who have experi¬ 
enced it,—when every man is conscious that he is 
standing face to face with death, and knows that in a 
few moments many of his comrades true and tried 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


23 


will sleep the sleep that knows no waking, it may 
be himself among the number. What thoughts of 
the past come thronging in his mind, what dread un¬ 
certainties of the future, what recollections of home 
and loved ones, of wife and children, of father, 
mother, and dear ones! I remember while thus 
waiting on this morning, noticing an officer of my 
regiment, one of the bravest of the brave, whom I 
had known from childhood, standing aloof from the 
rest, leaning upon his sword, the tears trickling down 
his cheek. Guessing the cause, I stepped up to him 
and placing my hand on his shoulder, said, trying 
to rally him : "Never mind, Lieutenant, you and I 
have been through many battles together, and always 
came out all right and I guess we will this time.” I 
can never forget his look as he replied, "Captain, it 
ain’t myself I am thinking of, for I can meet death 
like a man, but its my wife and four little children 
at home.” These were the thoughts that passed 
through many a mind as we stood waiting the word 
of command. 

At quarter past three o’clock the fuse attached to 
the powder in the mine was lighted. Anxiously we 


24 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


waited, but no explosion followed. Half an hour 
passed, but all was silent as the grave—scarcely a 
whisper among the men. The only sound was the 
early song of the birds in the trees and shrubs. The 
moments were passing—officers and men growing 
impatient. At length it became certain that the fuse 
had gone out, and the question was, what shall be 
done? A lieutenant and sergeant of the Forty- 
eighth Pennsylvania, one of them a Rhode Island 
man, volunteered to go in and ascertain the cause. 
Cautiously examining the fuse, they find where it 
had gone out. Cutting it and preparing to ignite it, 
the lieutenant computes the time it will take it to 
burn and the distance he has to go to escape the 
effect of the explosion. He sees that he has scarcely 
a chance of escape. His match is lighted, he looks 
at his watch and sees that it is half past four o’clock 
and knows that the mine must explode immediately 
or the whole plan is a failure. Calmly choosing the 
almost certain death to the failure of the project, he 
applies the match and as if to verify the old adage, 
" Fortune favors the brave,” escapes unhurt. 

Meanwhile General Meade, a mile to the rear, 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


25 


comfortably bestowed in his quarters, becoming im¬ 
patient at the delay, and ignorant of its cause, grows 
irritable, and at length, at half past four, orders the 
charge to be made without regard to the explosion. 
Fortunately his order was not received till the explo¬ 
sion took place. At twenty minutes to five, I was 
standing with my watch in hand and noting the time, 
I remarked, " I guess the game’s up for to-day,” when 
all of a sudden the earth beneath my feet heaved as 
with the force of an earthquake, and the rebel fort 
in our front rose some five hundred feet in the air, 
with a heavy report as of distant thunder. Then 
followed a scene which beggars all description and of 
which language must fail to convey the faintest idea. 
In an instant a fort of six guns, with caissons, lim¬ 
bers and all their equipments, and a garrison of five 
hundred men, were blown into the air and fell in 
shapeless masses in every direction for hundreds of 
yards, and where but a moment before stood the fort 
with its garrison sleeping in almost perfect security, 
was a hole or crater two hundred feet long, sixty 
feet wide and twenty-five feet deep. Probably not 
a man of all that garrison escaped. At the instant 
3 


26 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


that we felt the jar of the explosion, the order, 
" Forward ! ” was shouted. A hundred pieces of 
artillery in our rear belched forth their thunders, 
while the shot and shell from them went screeching 
past us and just over our heads. And here let me 
pause a moment to pay a just tribute to the officer 
in command of those guns, and whom I notice before 
me to-night. For I cannot refrain from saying even 
in his presence, that had every part of the plan of 
the battle been executed as faithfully, as promptly, 
and as efficiently, as that assigned to Colonel Monroe, 
Chief of Artillery of the Ninth Corps, the issue of 
the battle must have been far different from what it 
was. The crash of artillery, mingling with the thun¬ 
ders of the explosion, the roar of musketry, the 
hoarse shouts of command, the cheers of the troops 
as they swept forward to the charge,’ their bayonets 
glistening in the rays of the rising sun, with the 
shrieks and groans of the wounded and dying, com¬ 
bined to make a scene such as Milton in his descrip¬ 
tion of the fierce combat on the battlements of hea¬ 
ven, when the apostate angels were cast thence, but 
faintly portrays, and which no one who witnessed it 
can ever forget. 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


27 


It had been intended that General Ledlie’s division 
should charge first, but General Griffin, who had 
formed his brigade—the first of General Potter’s 
division—directly in front of the fort, having been 
called away just at the moment of the explosion, 
Colonel White, who had instructions from General 
Griffin to take the brigade in in case the explosion 
occurred before his return, not being familiar with 
the details of the plan, gave the order "Forward !” as 
soon as he felt the explosion, and so it happened 
that we were the first to enter the crater made by 
the explosion, the colors of my regiment being the 
first planted on the ruins of the fort, almost before 
the dirt had ceased falling. Regiment after regi¬ 
ment followed us, but the enemy, at first panic 
stricken, quickly rallied and begun at once to pour 
in upon us a terrific fire, both of artillery and in¬ 
fantry, to avoid which the later regiments, instead of 
passing directly over the works at this point, as was 
intended, piled into the crater after us. Quickly 
rallying, we passed beyond the crater, and sweeping 
down the works to the right and left, carried them 
for some two hundred yards in either direction, and 


28 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


then forward and attempted to pass on to the crest 
of Cemetery Hill, as directed in General Meade’s 
orders, but the different regiments had already suf¬ 
fered terribly in the charge. The whole of the three 
white divisions had been sent in, no support came 
to our relief, and, slowly and sadly disputing every 
inch of ground, we were forced back towards the 
crater. Time was passing but it brought us no relief 
until about nine o’clock, when the Fourth Division 
came in with all the impetuosity of new troops, 
cheering wildly, and for a moment it seemed as 
though the tide of battle would turn, and, if sup¬ 
ported, we would carry the hill. But our hope was 
short lived, for though we rallied again and again, 
each time we were forced back at the point of the 
bayonet, towards the crater and finally into it. I 
never saw men fight better than the colored division, 
but they came too late to avail us. 

I saw instances of individual bravery there that 
were never excelled upon any field. I noticed in 
particular the intrepidity of one private soldier, to 
whom God had given a dark skin but a brave heart 
and purpose, as well as a powerful physique. While 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


29 


the enemy were forcing us back he came to the front, 
and calmly loading his rifle, waited till the enemy 
rallied to another charge upon us and until within a 
few feet of us, when, deliberately stepping over the 
breastworks that separated us, he shot the foremost 
rebel, then clubbing his musket he dispatched the 
two next with its butt, and breaking it at the second 
blow, with a look of disgust he threw it away and 
came back amid a shower of bullets, unharmed. 

But all this bravery could avail nothing, for the 
enemy had had time to send reinforcements to the 
threatened line and the day was lost. Upon our re¬ 
turn to the crater, a fearful sight met us. It had 
become nearly filled with the wounded, the dead and 
the dying, to such an extent that many were 
trampled to death who were otherwise unharmed. 
Vainly we attempted to hold the crater till night 
fall, so that we could escape under cover of the 
darkness. About two o’clock in the afternoon the 
enemy charged over into the crater and all that re¬ 
mained were taken prisoners. While in the crater 
occurred another instance of daring and self-forget¬ 
fulness, which I witnessed, and which is described by 
General Griffin, whose words I quote: 


30 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


“ On another occasion, at the battle of the Mine, when it 
was found impossible to succeed in the attempt to break the 
rebel line, our troops who held the crater were ordered by 
General Grant to retreat. Shot and shell and musket balls 
rained down upon those troops with fearful destructiveness. 
The enemy also had a cross fire on the open field over which 
they must retreat back to our lines, and could bring so many 
guns to bear upon that point as to make it almost sure death to 
any one who should attempt to pass over that ground. The day 
was exceedingly hot Our poor boys were lying there in the 
burning sand upon which a July sun was shining with all the 
power of its vertical rays. Many of the wounded had crawled 
in there to avoid the shot, only to be exposed to the terrible 
bombs which fell in scores and exploded among them, often 
tearing them to pieces in the most horrible manner. All were 
suffering agonies of thirst, and the wounded were absolutely 
dying for the want of water. While lying there in that condi¬ 
tio^, waiting for our artillery to open and draw the enemy’s 
fire so that the wounded might - be saved and the retreat made 
with greater safety and with less loss, soldiers would come 
to their commanding officers and ask leave to go to the rear for 
water—to pass through that terrific shower of bullets and can¬ 
non shot and bring back water for the poor suffering boys 
around them. The reply would be, 1 Yes, take as many can¬ 
teens as you can well carry and go, and bring us water’ — given 
more with the hope of saving that soldier from being captured 
where he was, and giving him a chance to run for his life, than 
with any expectation of seeing him return; for the probability 
at that time was that nearly all would be either captured or 


BATTLE OF THE MINE 


31 


killed, aud it was thought too much to expect of any soldier 
that he would voluntarily pass twice through almost certain 
death—after having once escaped. Soldier after soldier came 
with the same request and was answered in the same manner, 
and quickly gathering up his load of canteens, started on his 
perilous journey—some to pass safely over and some to fall by 
the way. In due time one of them was seen clambering over 
our lines below, loaded down with well-filled canteens of cool 
water. What shouts and hurrahs from those parched throats 
greeted the brave fellow as he dashed toward us through the 
leaden hail. What blessings he received as he came among us 
and distributed the priceless beverage to those wounded men 
dying of thirst. Presently another of those heroes comes over 
the parapet with his burden of canteens. He, too, starts to join 
us with all the speed of which he is capable, but ere he has 
passed half way across that deadly field, he throws up his arms 
and goes down with the unmistakable thud of death. Quick as 
thought a young soldier dashes out from among us, rushes 
across the field, and seizing the canteens from the body of the 
fallen man, starts back to join us, but is shot down ere he has 
made a dozen yards. But see! He is up again, with indomitable 
pluck, and comes in with his precious freight only slightly 
wounded. And the shouts rise louder than ever for his gallant 
exploit. Then another comes over the parapet aud succeeds iu 
reaching us. Another attempts it and falls. And so on, until 
I believe every one of those noble fellows returned with his 
gallons of water, or fell in the attempt. It was to me the most 
striking exhibition of heroism and true courage that I saw dur¬ 
ing the whole war.” 


32 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


As we were forced to yield the crater, about a 
dozen of us climbed over the edge and took refuge 
in the angle formed by the upheaved earth and the 
breastworks, where we remained for an hour, the ene¬ 
my upon one side and we upon the other, neither side 
daring to raise their heads. Among the number 
were General Griffin, of New Hampshire, General 
Hartranft, (now Governor of Pennsylvania,) and 
General Bartlett, of Massachusetts. The latter had 
attracted my attention particularly in the charge, as 
he had lost a leg at Bull Run and now led his men 
into the fight on a cork leg, carrying no sword or 
equipments, but simply a rattan walking stick, and 
was conspicuous in the front of the charge. De¬ 
liberately we discussed the choice between remaining 
and being taken prisoners, or almost certain death in 
retreat. Choosing the latter, we all started at once 
except General Bartlett, who could not run, and a 
few of us escaped but more fell by the way. 

Thus ended in failure what promised to be one of 
the most successful battles of the war, and which 
must ever be ranked among the lost opportunities of 
the struggle. I have not time had I the wish, to 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


33 


discuss the question of who was to blame for the 
failure or what were its causes. The great defect 
was in the lack of support, which was at hand in 
abundance had General Meade seen fit to have 
allowed it to be used. Certain it is that the failure 
should not be attributed to General Burnside, for no 
one could have accomplished more with the troops 
at his disposal. The loss in the Ninth Corps, was 
over four thousand, more than a fourth of its whole 
number, showing with what desperation they fought. 
General Meade, ever jealous of General Burnside, 
and incapable of appreciating his nobility of char¬ 
acter, cast upon him all the responsibility of the 
failure, and the result was his retirement from the 
command of the Ninth Corps and from active service. 
But when true merit and meritorious service, though 
from modesty unclaimed, is fully appreciated, the 
name of Burnside will stand far above that of many 
of those who from motives of jealousy and meanness 
defamed him. 

Permit me, though not pertinent to this paper, to 
state a fact I think generally unknown in regard to 
General Sherman’s March to the Sea, and for which 


34 


BATTLE OF THE MINE 


he has received and is entitled to such meeds of 
praise, and that is, that the first man to suggest and 
plan that march was General Burnside. After the 
capture of Knoxville by General Burnside in 1873, 
he sent to General Halleck a dispatch, submitting 
three plans for his future movements, the last of 
which was ;—I quote the official record :— 

“To move on the south side of the Tennessee, through 
Athens, Columbus and Benton, past the right flank of the 
enemy, sending a body of cavalry along the railroad on its west 
side to threaten the enemy’s flank and cover the movements of 
the main body, which, consisting of seven thousand infantry and 
five thousand cavalry, will move rapidly down the line of the 
East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad, to Dalton, destroying the 
enemy’s communications, sending a cavalry force to Rome to 
destroy the machine works and powder mills at that place, the 
main body moving rapidly on the direct road to Atlanta, the 
railroad centre, and there entirely destroying the enemy’s com¬ 
munications, breaking up the depots, etc., thence moving to 
some point on the coast, where cover can be obtained, as shall 
be agreed upon with you. It is proposed to take no trains but 
to live upon the supplies at the enemy’s depots, destroying such 
as we do not use. If followed by the enemy, as we undoubtedly 
shall be, Rosencrans will be relieved and enabled to advance, 
and from the celerity of our movements and the destruction of 
bridges, etc., in our rear, the chance of escaping material injury 









BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


35 


from pursuit are in our favor. Our chief loss would probably be 
in stragglers. I am in favor of the last plan.” 

To the above dispatch General Halleck replied 
under date of October second :— 

“ The purport of all your instructions has been that you 
should hold your point near the upper end of the valley and with 
all your available force move to the assistance of Rosencrans. 
Since the battle of Chicamauga and the reduction of our force to 
paper, you have been repeatedly told that it would be dangerous 
to form a connection on the south side of the Tennessee river 
and consequently that you ought to march on the north side. 
Rosencrans has now telegraphed to you that it is not necessary 
to join him at Chattanooga, but only to move to such a position 
that you can go to his assistance should he require it. You are 
in direct communication with Rosencrans and cau learn his con¬ 
dition and wants sooner than I can. Distant expeditions into 
Georgia are not now contemplated. The object is to hold East 
Tennessee by forcing the enemy south of the mountains and 
closing the passes against his return.” 

After we were drawn back to our old line we 
were forcibly reminded of the cruelties of war, and 
our enemy’s hate, by the following circumstances. 
We had left upon the slope between the lines a 
large number of dead and wounded. A flag of 
truce was immediately sent out requesting permis- 


36 


BATTLE OF THE MINE. 


sion to bring off the wounded and to bury our 
dead, which was refused; and for two days the 
wounded lay exposed to the intense heat of the mid¬ 
summer sun without food or water, as targets for 
rebel bullets, and no opportunity to shoot one of the 
wounded was allowed to pass unimproved. Even 
those who were able to move and had crawled close 
up to the rebel line of works, were driven out by 
tossing among them bunches of cartridges with a 
slow match attached, that they might more easily 
become victims of rebel hate. When the permission 
was finally granted two days after the battle, we 
buried the. dead but found only about a dozen 
wounded living upon the field. 

Is it strange that we who witnessed scenes like 
these should be slow to forget them, and while we 
cherish no revenge, should demand that those who 
attempted to destroy the government, and practiced 
these barbarities on the field, and starved our soldiers 
in prison pens, should show works meet for repent¬ 
ance before we again commit to their hands the con¬ 
trol of the government. Is it strange either that 
we should cherish with a love that will never forget, 


BATTLE OF THE MINE 


37 


those who, living or dead to day, stood side by side 
with us amid scenes like these; or that we cherish 
with a love amounting almost to reverence, the land 
drenched with and saved by such precious blood ; or 
shall say of it to-night— 

Oh! Beautiful! My Country! ours once more! 

Smoothing thy gold of war-dishevelled hair 
O’er such sweet brows as never others wore, 

And letting thy set lips, 

Freed from wrath’s pale eclipse, 

The rosy edges of their smile lay bare, 

What words divine of lover or of poet, 

Could tell our love and make thee know it? 

Among the Nations bright beyond compare! 

What were our lives without thee ? 

What all our lives to save thee? 

We reck not what we gave thee, 

We will not dare to doubt thee, 

But ask whatever else, and we will dare! 


4 


































































- 















Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process. 
Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide 
Treatment Date: May 2010 

PreservationTechnologies 

A WORLD LEADER IN COLLECTIONS PRESERVATION 

111 Thomson Park Drive 
Cranberry Township, PA 16066 
(724) 779-2111 































